In the interior of Brazil, wealthy business families and rural producers are still not served by investment specialists and are unaware of the services offered by private banking. It is in this area that Itaú Private Bank has been expanding its operations.
Capturing new customers outside the traditional network in recent years, through regionalization, has been a decisive strategy. In the last four years, the bank has opened more than six offices, reaching 15 units across the country.
The idea is to reach out to business families and wealthy individuals outside the Rio-São Paulo axis, where the demand doesn't always resemble that of Faria Lima.
"How do I serve an agribusiness client? They have different demands than a client on Faria Lima," says Fernando Beyruti, global head of Itaú Private Bank, in an interview with Wealth Point , a NeoFeed program.
"He needs credit to buy an aircraft, he needs help to increase the amount of land he owns. We've gained a better understanding of what he wants and how the bank has been approaching him," he added.
This regional movement helped explain a result that came ahead of schedule. The target of R$ 1 trillion under management, set for the end of 2027, was reached at the end of 2025. Now, the operation totals R$ 1.1 trillion under onshore and offshore management and maintains its leadership in the Brazilian private banking market, with a 31% market share, according to the bank.
In Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo, Itaú Private Bank's market share is above 35%. In other regions, it was around 20% in 2022 and rose to nearly 25%.
The bank's assessment is that there is still room to bring these locations closer to a fair market share of around 30%. Therefore, new regional offices are planned for the coming years.
According to Beyruti, the trillion-dollar brand is the result of a combination of factors. "We've expanded several offices, invested internationally, completely repositioned the private banking business in terms of branding, and invested heavily in technology," he says.
The question now is how to continue growing and remain relevant in an increasingly competitive market, contested by banks, platforms, independent boutiques, global banks, and multi-family offices.
Consulting model
Itaú Unibanco's big bet for private banking is the growth of its consulting-style service, with explicit fees and global consolidation of assets across various platforms, without sacrificing the structure, scale, and product portfolio of a large bank.
Today, private bank clients choose their compensation model, and about 50% are in fee-based models, where a fixed fee is charged for services, with no fees embedded in product sales.
Within this framework, the provision of comprehensive consulting services has grown. Previously available only to clients of Itaú's multi-family office, which serves clients with assets exceeding R$ 1 billion, the private banking arm has been offering the service to its entire client base, scaling the business.
Combining private consulting and family office services, we already have over R$110 billion under management and more than 100 families served by this model. The goal is to double in size in the coming years.
"We've grown a lot in recent years and we're preparing the operational structure and consultants to expand the model and scale up. I have no doubt we'll double in size in the next two years," says Beyruti.
A significant portion of the recent customer acquisition came precisely from those who were considering setting up an independent home, a family office. This is a type of customer that Itaú doesn't want to lose and is facing this competition head-on.
"Why would I let the client go if, with all due respect, there are excellent multinationals out there, but I can do this within the bank, with the structure I have, with Itaú behind me?", he says.
"We believe that this advisory model, this consulting model, will be a winner. It makes sense for most clients. That's how it works in developed countries, and we are increasingly moving towards this model at the bank," he adds.
This movement didn't start now. In 2024, Itaú Private Bank had already launched an offensive to counter the advance of multi-family offices, closing an exclusive partnership in Brazil with Addepar , a global data technology company, to automate the consolidation of portfolios, returns, transactions, and balances. At the time, the consolidation service was restricted to Itaú's platform, both onshore and offshore.
A major contributor to bringing in new clients is also the high-income retail base, with Personnalité clients growing and acquiring the private banking profile, which serves clients with assets exceeding R$ 10 million.
Offshore expansion
The second major avenue for growth is offshore. When Beyruti took over leadership of the private banking division in 2022, the international share of clients' portfolios was around 20%. Now, it's at about 26% or 27%. The goal is to reach 30% or 35% of clients' assets abroad in the coming years.
This progress doesn't stem solely from recommendations for financial diversification. The nature of international demand from Brazilian families has changed.
In addition to investing abroad, many clients have had children living overseas, properties in other countries, recurring expenses in dollars or euros, and, in some cases, a change of tax residence. This requires a more comprehensive banking relationship outside of Brazil—it is not enough to offer a range of funds, bonds , or international alternatives.
"Not only have investments increased, but clients have also had different demands. This means that clients need a bank that is close to them and that can help them, whether it's to obtain financing, credit, or to help pay bills elsewhere," says Beyruti.
The strategy is gaining traction at a time when global banks are raising minimum investment amounts for Latin American clients. For Itaú, the advantage is viewing assets in a consolidated way.
"If a client has US$1 million, US$2 million, or US$3 million abroad, they're not a good client for global investors. But I see that they have R$20 million or R$30 million here—to me, that's a great client," says the global head of Itaú Private Bank.
To advance in this area, Itaú has applied for a license to operate as a multiple bank in the United States, with approval expected in early 2026. This will allow it to directly offer services such as mortgage loans, credit cards, and payment methods, without relying on third parties.
The bank already has a presence in Miami, New York, the Bahamas, Lisbon, and Zurich, in addition to the group's operations in countries such as Paraguay, Uruguay, and Chile. Its ambition goes beyond Brazilians who want to diversify their assets abroad—Itaú aims to serve Brazilians who have changed their tax residence, families with children living outside the country, and clients in Latin America.
